Today is the pub date for George Saunders’ first novel, Lincoln In The Bardo, which is set in Oak Hill Cemetery, above Georgetown. In the novel, the spirit of Willie Lincoln, dead at age 11 in 1862, exists along with others in that netherworld between life and Buddhist reincarnation. President Lincoln, convulsed in mourning, visits his son, and is observed by the other spirits. We have visited Oak Hill Cemetery many times, and it is situated next to Dumbarton Oaks, its front entrance looking down upon Georgetown and the Potomac, its back acreage looking down upon Rock Creek Park. It is a gorgeous, peaceful spot, and a lovely place to visit on a Sunday afternoon in turbulent times. All images Leica M10.

Life is filled with choices. Last week, we chose to be at the Tidal Basin on the sunny evening in order to catch the Cherry Blossom Frenzy. Of course, we said, we’d be able to get to see the tulips this weekend in their customary frenzy, like so:

And yet upon arrival at Dumbarton Oaks this afternoon, we found this:

We missed the Tulip Frenzy! In fairness to us, the weather pattern has the flora and fauna confused, and the camellia bush that always blooms by Easter just bloomed. But sadly, this was the best we could find: